A Minnesota police department made its largest-ever fentanyl bust, arresting a man who was in possession of 24 pounds of the dangerous drug.
"This is the largest seizure of fentanyl ever for Bloomington [police] and one of the largest seizures recorded for the state," the Bloomington Police Department said in a statement Thursday, according to a report in the Star Herald.
The department arrested 36-year-old Marcus Trice at a local hotel after finding the 24 pounds of fentanyl pills designed to look like oxycodone, later charging him with first-degree possession with intent to distribute.
Trice also faces charges of credit card fraud, with police finding several fraudulent credit cars along with the stash of drugs.
Police were alerted to the situation by a hotel that suspected Trice was attempting to use a fraudulent identity to book a $205 room in August. According to the report, Trice, who is from the Seattle area, appeared nervous when officers questioned him and said he was in Minnesota to attend a funeral but could not name the person who died.
Trice is being held in federal custody at the Sherburne County Jail without bail and has a court hearing scheduled for November 10.
Minnesota has seen a steady increase in opioid-related deaths over the last two decades, recording 678 such deaths in 2020, according to Minnesota Department of Health Figures. That number stood at 336 in 2015 and just 54 in 2000.
Fentanyl has helped fuel the opioid crisis throughout the U.S. and was responsible for nearly 75% of all drug overdose deaths in 2021.
"Unfortunately, Bloomington, like many other cities across the country, has seen an increase in opioid overdoses and opioid related overdose deaths," the police statement said.
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